StewStuph

Well, the kids are getting older and today our eldest received his license from the state of NC. So that means our insurance will increase, dramatically. Not only that, but we are once again a 3 car family. The wife has the Kia Sedona so that we can accommodate the family of six. We still have the Dodge Charger, and last week I bought a 2016 Hyundai Veloster. Gina and I had been in discussions for a couple of weeks about the "car situation" and I had been tentatively shopping online for a small hatchback. After searching Autotrader , Carmax , Carvana I found the Hyundai through Autotrader at a local dealer . So I messaged them online to make sure the car I had seen was still available and to make arrangements to see the car and take it for a test drive. I left work last Wednesday at lunch and made my way to the dealer. After driving the car I decided it was the right price and just what I had been looking for. Gina was away on an overnight field trip so I sent some tex...

This past weekend I went camping with a Boy Scout Troop of which two of my boys are members. The adventure started Friday afternoon with the Troop meeting at 3:00 pm to make the drive, estimated to be four hours, to the mountains of Virginia. With this plan, we would all be able to set up camp before dark. However, as is often the case, drivers on the road failed to keep their vehicles from colliding. We ended up in traffic jams on more than one occasion. After the traffic, and an additional 30 minute rest stop, we arrived at our campsite, Grayson Highlands State Park , at 8:30 pm. A grand total of 5:15 travel time.By that time it was dark but we had plenty of flashlights and lanterns that made setting up camp go smoothly. Saturday was to be the busiest day of the trip. We had plans to ride bikes on The Virginia Creeper Trail . The Troop had done the same thing the year before, though I did not make the trip. We left our campsite and drove to Damascus, VA to rent bikes from ...

I have enjoyed Weather Underground for years. I have known about the ability to add personal weather stations (PWS) to their site for years. Well, it has finally happened. I bought a PWS. Recently, Woot  had one for sale at a pretty nice discount. It is an Acurite 5-in-1 weather station . I received it last week and set it up this past weekend. It is now reporting conditions to  Weather Underground  and you can observe the data collected from my backyard here . Temperature, humidity, wind speed, wind direction, wind chill, heat index, "feels like," dew point, precipitation rate, precipitation amount are the basic measurements the instrument records. In addition to reporting data to  Weather Underground , there is a display console that is inside the house to display the outdoor conditions along with indoor conditions including temperature and humidity. There are apps that are available for both iOS and Android that connect to the weather station and displ...

A vacation 3 years in the making. Camping reservations one year out. A long weekend culminating with the Great America Eclipse of 2017 . As it turns out, an unobstructed view of totality eluded us. Years ago my son asked when would be the next time we could see a solar eclipse near us. After doing a web search and determining our next best chance would be in 2017, I put the date of August 21, 2017, on my google calendar. Over the next few years, I researched the path of totality. I hoped to find some place where our entire family, who would include mid and late teen children, could enjoy a vacation as well as experience a total eclipse. I settled on Charleston, SC as our destination. I would hope that this would provide us beach time, historical sites to tour. At first, I wanted to rent a beach house, but realized, along with Gina, that camping would be one-quarter or less the cost than renting a house. I looked for camping sites near Charleston and made the decision to camp ...

I am sure you can find plenty of playlists to go along with the Great American Eclipse today, but here is mine. You can also listen to this on  Google Play Music , minus "Jealousy Rides With Me"

If you had told me ten years ago that I would travel to Michigan for the Fourth of July I would not have believed you. However, my life has led me down this path and I am grateful for the experiences, new family and friends I have gained. Michigan in the summer, for me, is much more pleasant than the winter. In looking at the kids school calendar earlier this year I was excited to see that we would be able to spend a week in the mitten state. In the past we have gone camping in the UP but this year decided to be trolls and spend most of our time in the Lansing area. This was a good thing as we had a couple of things we wanted to do that we usually don't get a chance to do in the winter or when we travel across the Mackinac Bridge . Gina had planned our week and invited friends and family to join us on our adventures. SATURDAY JULY, 1 We spent most of the day driving on or first Saturday of vacation. Arriving in Lansing around dinner time. We had a relaxing meal with my Gina...

R.E.M. officially disbanded in 2011. However, their impact will be felt for for decades. One of the great things that continues to happen is articles are still be written about the band and their music. This one from diffuser , in particular, is one of my favorites thus far. It is about all the "places" conjured up in the music and lyrics of their songs. Having finally made a trip to Athens last summer, I am reminded of the fun I had finding just a few of the icons of their life and career.